Sitting fourth after an unbeaten opening seven matchdays, Elche’s season has gone disastrously since, but they started promisingly here as they looked to shed the title of the joint-worst away side in Europe’s top-five leagues.
Everything was going for them except the finish, with their closest chance falling to Buba Sangare, who sliced over when meeting a far-post cross on the volley.
But the half-hour mark brought a dramatic change in the momentum of play, and Georges Mikautadze finally tested Matias Dituro in the Elche goal in the moments leading up to the opener.
Tajon Buchanan broke through on the right-hand side, before entering the area and shifting onto his right foot to cannon into the roof of the net from a tight angle.
The hosts were unplayable from there, and richly deserved their second when Santi Comesana put Santiago Mourino into space in the area, leaving the Uruguayan to fire goalward in similar fashion to his side’s first.
Villarreal continued to look comfortable - and intent on increasing their lead - at the start of the second half, but Elche gradually started to challenge more.
It wasn’t until the 70th minute that they finally troubled Luiz Junior, with Victor Chust’s curling effort turned past the post by the Brazilian stopper.
But the visitors did make things interesting with just under 10 minutes to go when Andre Silva flicked a near-post header into the net from Martim Neto’s corner.
That prompted Elche to throw everything at a desperate final act, but there was to be no fairytale ending for the Costa Blanca side. Though Real Betis are still to play this weekend, Villarreal now hold an 11-point gap over fifth spot, meaning a second consecutive UEFA Champions League participation is likely on the cards.
Another defeat on the road also extends Elche’s overall winless run to 11 competitive matches, and what once looked like an assured return to the top flight now sees them just one point from the drop zone.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Pape Gueye (Villarreal)
